How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography

Based on Engle, M. (2002). How to prepare an annotated bibliography. Retrieved 1/13/2004 from http://www.library.cornell.edu/t/help/res_strategy/citing/annotated.html

What is an Annotated Bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by a brief (usually 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

Annotations vs. Abstracts

Abstracts are the purely descriptive summaries found at the beginning of scholarly journal articles and in periodical indexes. Annotations are both descriptive and critical. The discuss the author’s point of view, clarity, appropriateness of expression, and authority.

The Process

Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed research.

First locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic.

Cite the book, article, or document using APA style.

Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) evaluate the authority or background of the author, (b) comment on the intended audience, (c) compare this work with another you have cited, or (d) explain how this work illuminates your topic.

Critically Appraising the Book, Article, or Document

For guidance in appraising and analyzing the sources of your bibliography see Critical Appraisal of Resources

Sample Annotated Bibliography Entry (APA format)

Newton, I, Darwin,C. (2003). The evolution of light eating bacteria in the academic environment. Retrieved 1/13/2004 from www.wondersofbiology.edu/wonders/biology/light_bacteria.htm

The authors, researches at the Cambridge University branch of Brunswick Academy, used data from the international longitudinal study of student lunches to test their hypothesis that sleepiness in high school students was the result of light eating bacteria consuming the afternoon sunshine caused students to interpret the dark as night time and fall asleep. The found a small correlation that was countered by the effect of the complex animal teacherous horribillus. This complements the earlier study by Walton.